End of Hostess Brands sparks a run on Twinkies in Loveland

Iconic bakery company files for liquidation; 18,500 out of work

By Craig Young Reporter-Herald Staff Writer

Posted:
11/17/2012 04:38:28 PM MST

Loveland resident Tom Thornburg leaves the Wonder Hostess Bakery Outlet empty-handed early Friday afternoon. The store in west Loveland had sold out of its snack cakes less than two hours after it opened.
(
Craig Young
)

Lovelanders reacted to Friday's news that Hostess Brands is closing by snapping up all the Twinkies they could find in town.

The Wonder Hostess Bakery Outlet in west Loveland had sold almost all its snack cakes less than two hours after opening, said assistant manager Melissa Bradt.

"We open at 9, and we had people here at 20 till 9," she said. "They were going for the snack cakes this morning, especially the Twinkies."

At 10:45 a.m., the Twinkies were gone, Bradt said. By 12:30 p.m., only a handful of packages of Donettes powdered doughnuts and some Wonder hot dog buns remained on the shelves, along with non-baked goods.

"The Denver store got cleaned out as well," said Bradt, who found out Friday morning that it would be her last day on the job.

This box of Twinkies was one of the last sold at the downtown Loveland Safeway on Friday morning. News that Hostess is closing down sparked a run on the iconic sponge cakes at local stores.
(
Craig Young
)

The outlet store at 911 N. Van Buren Ave. in front of the company's truck depot had reopened just three months ago after being closed for several years. Friday's announcement by Hostess Brands Inc. that it was planning to liquidate means the Loveland store is finished, too.

When Loveland resident Lee Bear stopped at the store about 12:30 p.m. Friday with his grandson, Dallas, the shelves were mostly bare.

They left empty-handed. "They didn't have what we needed ... treats for the grandkids and for my sweet tooth," Lee Bear said.

Bear expressed concern for the workers who would be losing their jobs. "I just don't know what the people are going to do," he said.

Elsewhere in Loveland, junk food nostalgics were making a run on Twinkies. The downtown Safeway apparently sold out of the iconic sponge cakes Friday morning, although it still had many boxes of other Hostess treats such as Ho Hos and Ding Dongs at 1 p.m.

Later in the afternoon, a worker at Loveland's Albertson's said the grocery store ran out of Twinkies after customers "were coming and getting them by the armloads this morning."

Hostess Brands, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January, filed a motion in court Friday to liquidate. The company said a strike by workers had crippled its ability to keep up production.

The Associated Press reported that Hostess sent workers home from its 33 factories, including one in Denver. About 18,500 workers will lose their jobs, according to AP.

In response to a contract offer from Hostess that cut wages and benefits, members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union went on strike last week. The bakers union represents about 30 percent of the company's workforce.

The company said no buyer is poised to rescue Hostess, but there has been interest in its 30 brands, some of which date back to 1888. Wonder Bread, Dolly Madison and Nature's Pride are among the products made by Hostess.